 In
the early 21st century a catastrophe of previously unknown proportion extinguished
virtually all forms of life on the North American continent. The sudden
annihilation of a great and thriving civilization occurred when impurities,
which had hung in the air for centuries, finally succumbed to the force
of gravity and rained down on the most unsuspecting world. In a matter
of days, the most advanced civilization of the ancient world suddenly perished,
and the substance that covered it hardened into rock that at times lies
as deep as 14 meters. Calamitous though these events were for the inhabitants
of ancient North America, for archaeologists, historians, and students
of the ancient past they offer a rare opportunity: the possibility of piecing
together an entire civilization that by a quirk of fate was frozen in time.
Over the past 200 years people have flocked to the continent, which is
now the planet’s largest desert wasteland. But excavation has been slow
and difficult. North America has not given up her secrets easily.
There have been 15 major excavation sites on the continent, and at each one the same thing has been found: long strips of concrete of varying width, some with one unbroken line down the center, others with broken lines (one, two, and sometimes as many as four) on either side of the central unbroken line. Often mounds of concrete set at regular intervals replace the unbroken line. Scholars think that there may be some religious significance to these strips, for plaques bearing iconographic inscriptions have been found (e.g. USI, RTE 66). Until the discovery of the tomb, however, not enough artifacts had been found to form a reasonable picture of the society. Visitors had always been awed by the sacred sign. The letters, set with the utmost precision against an opalescent background, are made of a semiprecious material (an indication that this was probably the tomb of the very wealthy, perhaps noble, families). The words, which glowed like a star in the night, are the opening of the prayer offered to the Deity of the Night; they also served as a beacon to travelers. No serious attempt at excavation had been made at the Toot'n Come On Motel until, by sheer accident, one of the archeaologists broke through a thin covering of the sediment covering the site. |